


A Bond Beyond Time

by morbid_smile



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Bonds Beyond Time, Canon Rewrite, Gen, Post-Yu-Gi-Oh! The Dark Side of Dimensions, Pre-Relationship, Rescue Missions, Rewrite, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-09-19
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:01:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26551060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/morbid_smile/pseuds/morbid_smile
Summary: Seto Kaiba gets the worst news possible: Pegasus J. Crawford is dead in a freak building collapse. Now he must find a way to cope with the horrific loss and its impact on Duel Monsters, but why do that when he has the Plana?CW: trauma and 9/11 style danger. This is my own retelling of the film Yugioh: Bonds Beyond Time because yikes that movie had such potential but just ended up being an advertising vehicle for 5Ds.
Relationships: Pegasus J. Crawford | Maximillion Pegasus & Kaiba Seto, Pegasus J. Crawford | Maximillion Pegasus/Kaiba Seto
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	A Bond Beyond Time

“… at least fifteen missing or dead and hundreds injured in freak earthquake. First responders are picking through the rubble swiftly for survivors. Unaccounted for persons include 26-year-old celebrity artist and creator of Domino City’s beloved Duel Monsters Maximillion Pegasus J. Crawford and 20-year-old King of Games, Domino’s own Yugi Muto.”

Kaiba gripped his desk, gritting his teeth as the reporter surveyed the damage. It was in the city center, just outside of Kaiba Corp Tower. If we walked to the window, the same one Gozaburo had leapt from so many years ago, Kaiba could see the damage for himself, a cloud of debris and piles of rubble with people moving frantically. He was having a panic attack, he was quite certain.

His door buzzed, but he didn’t bother answering. Mokuba let himself inside, and he looked like he’d been crying. His voice wavered as he spoke, “Seto…”

“This is the end, Mokuba. Without its creator and the reigning King of Games, there’s nothing but our tech keeping Duel Monsters going.”

Mokuba took a slow breath, “Nii-sama. I know that’s not the only reason you’re –“

Kaiba hadn’t heard him, couldn’t hear anything over the pounding in his chest, “Yugi and Pegasus all at once!? Impossible!” He slammed his fist on the table, bruising his knuckles, then, in a fit of rage, overturned the entire desk. Everything went crashing. Outside, his secretary gave a little yelp.

Mokuba sighed, unfazed by the display of raw rage. He’d seen similar after the Pharaoh had passed into the afterlife. “Seto, our people are on the scene. They might still recover them both alive!”

Kaiba took a shaky breath then another. “You’re right. You’re usually right.” He slid on his trench coat, “We’re going.”

Mokuba hurried after him, “To the scene? Seto, is that a good idea?”

Kaiba was already at the elevator. He punched the down button and the doors opened smoothly. Soon they were inside and riding down at a speed only the KC private elevator could reach. As soon as the doors opened, Kaiba was out, across the lobby, and on the street heading to the scene.

Mokuba trailed behind struggling to keep up. “Nii-sama wait!”

Kaiba didn’t stop. His years of athleticism served him well, and he leapt over the debris to land in the middle of the scene. His heart was in his throat.

The dueling area, and in fact the city center, was a wreck. The top of one of the older buildings had crumbled as though it’d been blasted by a missile. Kaiba made a note to sue the building’s owner into oblivion for such recklessness. He also noted the scene looked like one of the places Gizaburo had dragged him to once upon a time to survey the damage and negotiate arms sales to both sides in ongoing foreign wars. Rubble was everywhere, and the air was full of the moans and crying of the wounded. Those uninjured were helping who they could, and dotted everywhere were KC employees, police, and firefighters clearing rubble as fast as possible. The surreal vision of people with duel disks clearing rubble or lying wounded was something out of a nightmare. For the first time in years, he felt small and helpless. His heart was still pounding in his chest.

“Kaiba!”

He turned, his eyes wide and blank as that day at Duelist Kingdom when he’d watched his beloved Three-Headed Blue Eyes melt and decay. Out of the crowd stepped the man himself, Yugi Muto, flanked by two rescue workers.

Yugi had a massive gash at his temple, and blood covered the entire right side of his face. His clothes were dusty and bloodied, and his eyes were red from either dust or tears. He clutched his right arm. No, as he came closer, Kaiba was certain: Yugi had been crying.

“Yugi…” he didn’t know what to say. Seto should have felt a bit calmer, but something told him it wasn’t over. His heart was still pounding.

Luckily, Mokuba had caught up to them, “Yugi! Are you okay? Oh jeez!”

Yugi let the rescue workers fuss over him like a man in a daze, “I’ll be fine,” then his eyes misted, and fresh tears tracked down his cheeks. “Pegasus, he –“

There was a shout from the workers, and Kaiba felt a sinking feeling. He raced towards the commotion. Behind him, he heard Yugi begging Mokuba to stay back.

As he crested the debris, he saw the bulk of the building had fallen here. There was the remains of a podium, and near it…

The sight of the broken body, the single eye staring vacant and empty, the blood …

Kaiba froze. No. It wasn’t possible. They’d made amends. They’d had lunch not two weeks ago. Pegasus had teased a new Blue-Eyes card. They were collaborating on a new Kaiba Land project. It had to be a fake, like something DOMA had pulled. It couldn’t be real.

But it was.

* * *

The weeks that followed were a blur. Seto Kaiba, per Pegasus’ will, had inherited all rights and ownership. Everything they’d built together, plus everything Pegasus had built alone, now belonged to Kaiba. The off-shore island and transplanted French castle, the holdings in Nevada, and a place Seto hadn’t even known about in Italy, were all in his name now. Pegasus’ legal team had been quite insistent, and though Pegasus’ family was outraged, it didn’t come as a huge surprise to Seto himself. He’d known, somehow, that Pegasus would deed him everything. But that didn’t mean he had to like how it came about.

Seto Kaiba, per the will, now had full ownership and creative control of Duel Monsters and the company Pegasus had built to produce it, Industrial Illusions. A generous amount went to Ishizu Ishtar’s museum in Egypt, and a large sum of money was set aside for a scholarships, one for young artists and another for young duelists. And that was that.

There was one stipulation, though: Duel Monsters and I2 had to remain individual entities. They could not be swallowed by Kaiba Corporation. They could only be owned by a person, not a corporate entity. Suddenly, Seto Kaiba owned two multi-national Fortune 500 companies.

Kaiba was under a great deal of stress. There had been legal struggles, the constant press of public interest, and the reporters. But the worst part, the part that stressed him out the most, was the funeral.

Seto had dreaded the funeral in the week leading up to it. It had been easy to just assume Pegasus would call eventually, that it was some kind of sick gag, even though deep down he knew even Pegasus wouldn’t stoop to this level. This was permanent. But he couldn’t shake the idea that Pegasus would just appear. The man had always seemed larger than life, powerful, a worthy adversary and… friend? No, he wouldn’t let that thought seep into his brain. If he did, he might not make it through.

And so, Seto Kaiba found himself standing beside Pegasus’ open casket. His parents had picked out beautiful pink and white roses, and they surrounded him on the plush cushion. His long silvery hair framed his face, draped strategically over the place where his left eye was missing. He looked deflated, empty. Not empty as Mokuba had been with his soul sucked out, or empty as Mai had been when Marik cursed her during Battle City. He looked like a wax figure. His skull was intact, and the damage to his body was invisible, erased by the artful hands of the mortuary. The sight didn’t make Seto feel any better.

Everyone else milled about. Somewhere, a woman was crying. Seto didn’t know what he was feeling, but it burned his insides like bile. But this anger was different from the usual. This was raw, ragged fury. He hadn’t felt this since the Pharaoh passed through the portal into the afterlife.

His voice was soft, measured as he spoke, “You pushed Yugi out of the way,” he said. His voice was strained. “You fool. Duel Monsters still needs you. How am I supposed to run everything? I’m only one man.”

Later, when they lowered Pegasus’ casket into the dirt beside his long-dead beloved Cyndia, Kaiba had an idea.

* * *

“Seto? Are you okay? You haven’t checked your email for days.”

“I’m fine,” Seto said, adjusting the Plana and triple checking the calculations. “I trust you to have everything under control.”

Mokuba sighed, his frustration evident even across the video screen, “Yeah, but this isn’t about that. It’s about you. You’ve been at the space station for ages.”

“I needed to think,” and that was true. He wasn’t about to lie to Mokuba, not directly anyway.

Mokuba paused, then added, “Look, I know Pegasus’ death hit you hard. It’s pretty obvious. You can talk to me.”

“Maybe later.” Seto entered the coordinates, satisfied when the computer light up an All Clear. “We can talk when I come back.”

“Back?” And now there was a panicked edge in Mokuba’s voice. It made Seto’s heart hurt as it always did when his little brother was upset, but he ignored it. “Seto? What are you – You’re not –?

“I am. Duel Monsters needs its visionary,” Seto sat in the chair, buckling the restraints and donning his helmet. Even if Mokuba wanted to, he couldn’t stop the countdown now, not even from the KC mainframe.

“But he’d dead, nii-sama!”

“Not for long,” he pressed the buttons to fully engage the system, “This isn’t over.”

Then the system kicked in. As he descended at blinding speed for the second time in his life, he grit his teeth. A few weeks should be nothing compared to jumping dimensions into the afterlife, but he hadn’t fully tested the time travel capabilities yet. He also didn’t have the benefit of the power of the Millennium Items, always drawn to each other, making navigation simpler. Regardless, he rejected the current outcome. Now, he would make his own future.

* * *

“Goodness, Yugi-boy, you certainly fought well!” The crowd was cheering, and Yugi smiled happily at Pegasus’s side at the head of it, the oldest building in Domino City behind them. The microphone was off for now, and they finally had a moment to chat.

Yugi grinned, “Thanks, Pegasus. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to without … you know.”

Pegasus nodded, “But you won anyway. You see, your own strength is just as important as the Pharaoh’s was. Remember, Yugi, you have value outside of the magic around you. It shouldn’t dictate your life and choices. Trust me, I learned that the hard way.”

Yugi nodded, “I know. But you seem better. Happier.”

Pegasus smirked, “No dramatic friend speeches, now! We have a trophy to award you! And afterwards, I’m treating you. We can catch up.”

Yugi nodded, “I’d like that!”

Pegasus turned the microphone back on and cleared his throat, “Well now, what a performance! There were so many cleanly executed strategies and strong plays today. Let’s applaud these amazing duelists!” The crowd burst into applause, cheering and clapping. A chant started up: “YU-Gi Yu-Gi Yu-Gi…” Pegasus gave Yugi a smirk, letting it go one for a few moments while Yugi squirmed in embarrassment, then silenced the crowd with an effortless gesture, “And now, I’m pleased to announce with winner of today’s tournament, Yugi Muto, our resident King of Games!”

The crowd erupted into cheers again, and Pegasus was about to hand over the trophy when suddenly Seto Kaiba strode in. Duelists parted for him like the Red Sea for Moses. Pegasus silenced the rest, “Oh, Kaiba-boy! What brings you here?”

Kaiba didn’t acknowledge him, couldn’t acknowledge him and that he was alive. Yugi was staring confused, likely expecting Kaiba to challenge him to a duel. But instead, Kaiba announced in his loudest possible voice, “Evacuate the area immediately! We’ve detected an upcoming earthquake, and that building isn’t stable!”

The reaction was swift, and neither Pegasus nor Kaiba’s people question his presence of his knowledge. Everyone acted.

Kaiba didn’t stay long enough to see the actual quake. The less he spent in the past, the better.

* * *

Pegasus regarded the coffee critically, arching one elegant eyebrow., “Kaiba-boy, this is most unusual. Since when do you show up after a tournament in my hotel with gifts?”

Kaiba tsked, taking a seat opposite. The hotel lobby was clean and neat, as most everything in Domino was these days, “Maybe I wanted to catch up.”

Pegasus inclined his head, “If this about the earthquake? You were right to get everyone out, you know. It could have been a disaster.”

“No, it’s not about that.”

Pegasus’s eyebrow shot up, “No ulterior motive? From you?”

“None,” Kaiba sipped his coffee. “So where are you travelling next?”

Pegasus chuckled, shaking his head. “I’ll figure out your game eventually.”

But Kaiba was certain he never would.


End file.
